Alegre - Calumboyan, Sogod Island Of Cebu
Check out Alegre in Calumboyan, Sogod in Cebu.
Close to the charming town of Sogod on the northeastern coast of Cebu,
Alegre's cottages are set in the lush tropical grounds, many of which offer
ocean views and private gardens. The resort boasts of a coconut grove
and three private beach coves, all of which have natural white sand.
Diving is a popular pastime and the house reef offers a 100 ft. wall dive.
Set amidst 27 hectares of lush tropical gardens, Alegre has 20 luxurious
cabanas which include 2 spacious bedrooms or a total of 40 rooms with
elegant oversized bathrooms and verandas overlooking the deep blue sea.
The pristine white sand beaches offer privacy in abundance. The resort
boasts of 3 private beach coves. Alegre beach resort is approximately 75
kilometers from the Mactan Cebu International Airport. Transfers can be
pre-arranged and free of charge. On the way to Alegre, one sees the
island's rich history through picturesque homes and old Spanish churches.
The resort has a restaurant that serves international cuisine, Bar &
Lounge, conference and banquet facilities, a library, game room, tennis
court, a 47 meter swimming pool and 2 children's pools. The aquamarina
has a whole range of water sports activities: jet-skiing, snorkelling and
diving. Whale and dolphin watching is an exciting treat for nature lovers
and offered on a complimentary basis for in-house guests. The
adventurous can go moutain trekking. Mountain bikes are also available.
Amanpulo - Pamalican Island, Palawan
Check out Amanpulo, Pamalican Island in Palawan.
More than a beach resort, with Amanpulo you get a tropical island to lose
yourself in. It's called Pamalican. This coralline treasure, lying low and
inviting in the remote region of Palawan, is shaped like a spiky,
high-heeled shoe poking out of the bryl-blue waters of the Sulu Sea. A
seven-square-kilometer lagoon rims Pamalican. Beyond is a channel,
where whales and sea cows have been known to stray. With industry in
this remote part of the Philippines limited to fishing, shell gathering and
seaweed cultivation, and with Manila an hour's plane ride away, Amanpulo
has become a popular prescription for too much reality. Once a family-run
coconut plantation, Pamalican was reborn as an island resort in December
1993. Francisco "Bobby" Maniosa, the Philippine architect behind
Amanpulo, let the culture, and the texture, of his island nation guide his
work. The resort's 40 casitas, 65-square-meter bungalows in hillside and
beachside settings, are modeled loosely after the Philippine "bahay kubo"
(village home). In Tagalog, the country's national language, bahay means
"hut" and kubo "nipa" - the leaves of the coconut palm frond, which was
basic roofing material on Philippine island homes for centuries. Amanpulo's
"huts" are roofed with shingles rather than palm fronds. Despite the
modest nod to progress, your hideaway will not lack for romance. In these
beach retreats, it is everywhere in the details: pebble-washed walls;
coconut-shell and seashell tables; Cebu marble bathrooms; rattan
headboards; sliding-glass doors that reveal outdoor decks and
his-and-her divans. Amanpulo (peaceful island) is minimalist theater. Aside
from staff housing, there's no village to wander through, no hawkers to
avoid, no crowds to contend with, though when the sea turtles are
nesting, you may have to step around a few families. When you've
concluded your beachside reverie, leaf through Philippine design books in
the plank-floored, Clubhouse library, lounge poolside next to young neem
trees, take a late-afternoon boat out to see the reef fish feed or snorkel
alongside giant clams. A barefoot stroll down Pamalican's sand beach gets
you around the 5.5-meter island in less than two hours. (At its widest
point, Pamalican is only 500 meters across.) Do the walk late in the day,
and listen to the birds: starlings and wood swallows and egrets and turtle
doves and more, all of which nest in the island's sandy jungle of scrub and
thorn-bush thickets. After sunset, take your private gasoline-powered
golf cart and follow the narrow stone road to the Clubhouse. The
enveloping blackness of evening at Amanpulo is relieved only by spotlight
and torch light and the unfiltered starlight that washes over an untroubled
world. the sounds of the night are yours to make.
